Sickness Has Its Affects
by megadoomingir
Summary: ZiM's gotten sick! It's gotten so bad, that he's barely clinging to life itself. Is there an alternative to death? Or no way out? R&R or not, I'll post faster than you can say 'CHUCK!
1. Imposter

**This was quickly written on my part and I was very tired as I wrote this late at night, but here you go. If you like it, please tell me.**

His hand was shaky as he reached for the doorknob. He grazed it lightly, then pulled back, unsure if this would work. He had managed to fool the few people he bumped into already, why wouldn't it work now?

Taking a shaky and deep breath he reached for the doorknob again and this time, grasped it tightly, turning it until it made a satisfying 'click'. All the students looked up from their desks and stared as the late student entered, sitting in the seat closest to the door.

The horribly old teacher that sat at her desk perked up, " ZiM!!" she hissed, " You're late!! Sit now, and suffer…"

The student shrugged, seeing he was already sitting.

A boy with an abnormally LARGE head jumped onto his desk, pointing accusingly at 'ZiM', " That's NOT ZiM!!" he told the bored and tired class, " ZiM's smaller and isn't quiet!!"

The students turned to look at the imposter ZiM, who was now very aware of the dangers.

He perked, " Uh, er YES!! I… am ZiM, who will… destroy the world… yeah…"

The class bought it and went back to being bored.

" OH, come ON!!" the child persisted, " How can you guys just say that THAT is ZiM?! He's gained so much weight in like, two days FLAT!!"

" New weight metabolism… thing…" 'ZiM' answered quickly.

The child grew more impatient, " You don't even sound like ZiM!!"

The imposter's eyes became shifty, then he relaxed and said only one word, " Puberty."

One of the taller children nodded, " Oh, man. You're gonna love it when it all ends. Puberty, scary stuff…"

The class nodded and turned back to being bored.

The huge headed child was not impressed and continued on, " ZiM would've gone onto an entire RANT about he was so AMAZING!! And THEN he would-"

A chattering squirrel smacked into the child's head.

" Shut your mouth, Dib!!" the teacher hissed again, " I believe that ZiM would appreciate the courtesy of you being QUIET!!"

Dib pulled himself back into his seat, " But, Ms. Bitters-"

" No more, Dib!!"

The ZiM imposter tapped his hand nervously on his desk, looking from Dib to the clock to Ms. Bitters and back to his desk in a cycle, wondering if the decision he was going to put into action was as good as he thought it was in his head.

And coming this late to school had its benefits. The bell rang and the zombie-like children filed out of the room, leaving Dib, the imposter, the teacher and a noisy chattering squirrel in the room alone. The imposter finally stood and, taking one last look at the paranormal investigator, took to going outside.

Not taking this too lightly and becoming disturbed by the angry squirrel let loose in the classroom, Dib trailed after, stalking this imposter just as he would any ZiM-related specimen.

The child finally grabbed hold of the imposter and spun him around, " I KNOW you're not ZiM, and though I may not know why you're trying to imitate him, I'll find out why…"

'ZiM's eyes became less frightened and more concerned as the hallway they stood in became less thick of students, " He needs help…"

Dib's eyes widened the narrowed, " What? Who needs help?"

" ZiM," the imposter said quietly, " he's sick, and there's nothing I can do…"

Dib eyed the alien, " Wait a second… you're SKOODGE!! The Irken who lives in ZiM's basement!! If ZiM is sick he can take sick days, why'd you bother imitating him to come all the way out here?!"

Skoodge kicked at the ground, " Well… ZiM's condition… it's bad… really, really bad, and it's getting worse… I need help-"

" Wait," Dib stopped him, " You're asking for help… from ME?!"

Skoodge's worried eyes turned hateful as he suddenly dragged Dib into the boys' bathroom.

" HEY!!" Dib hollered as he struggled, " Let me GO!!"

Skoodge stood him upright and shoved him into the wall, " ZiM may be out to destroy your planet, but if HE dies, I'm taking him OFF this rock and will ensure no other alien life forms land here!! You're ONLY chance of sheer proof is sick and dying!!"

Dib stared at Skoodge as the stressed Irken let him go to rub his temples, " You… ZiM's dying?"

Skoodge looked up at him, " It's gotten way too strong for him to handle. He won't last much longer without a scientist…"

Dib eyes widened, " B-but… I'm a PARANORMAL investigator!! Not a doctor!!"

"Your dad's a scientist," Skoodge replied quickly, " Give him ZiM's test results and make up a story. Tell him you got alien proof and you need him to look it over, say if he doesn't believe you to just humor you, anything at this point will be considered valuable."

Dib glared and crossed his arms, " You said you'd just leave with ZiM's body, fine…"

Skoodge's eyes filled with rage, " I'll destroy this planet myself, and you're looking at the poster boy for INTERGALATIC CONQUEST!!"

Dib nodded in fear.

**R&R's would be nice. I'll try to update soon.**


	2. Confirmation

**Another chapter, no? If you've gotten this far, you're either crazy or curious…**

Skoodge stepped cautiously into the Membrane household, taking in the lack of the exciting Irken machinery buzz.

Dib shut the door behind the invader and led him to the stairs, " You go upstairs and stay in my room. Don't touch anything. I'll talk to my dad," Skoodge headed upstairs as Dib continued, " and tell him I'm doing a science project."

Skoodge turned and nodded, " You do that…"

Dib shook his head and sighed, " My room's the first door on the left," he turned and headed towards his dad's labs.

Skoodge continued up the stairs and quickly found Dib's room. As he entered, he was suddenly mentally pelted by the posters and post-it stamps stuck all over Dib's walls. On closer inspection, they seemed notes and pictures about ZiM. His weaknesses, a sample of his writing, drawing and architectural skills. There was a small post-it with ZiM's address, but it was too small to make out.

Skoodge shook his head and turned his attention over to a rather large poster of what looked like ZiM's anatomy. The squeedlyspooch, heart and brain were all set in the right places, as surprising as it was to Skoodge. A strange sickly feeling overpowered Skoodge as he thought of the ZiM that was trying desperately to stay alive at home. The invader collapsed onto the human's bed and stared up into the ceiling, trying to regain his composure.

Foot steps coming up the stairs alerted Skoodge to the newly arriving presence, and he jumped to his feet, fixing his leaning wig and blinking to make sure those scratchy lenses were in place.

Dib entered his room, " O.K., my dad's willing to help, but he needs some kind of test results to analyze."

Skoodge's PAK handed him a slip of paper, " Here… just… hurry up…"

Dib looked at the results, but couldn't make much of the scientific etchings, though the look on Skoodge's face said he just needed a confirmation of the worst.

The human took back down the stairs and popped again into his dad's labs, " Hey dad!! I have those results you wanted to see!"

The professor looked up from his ventriloquist dummy, " Ah, splendid, let me see," he took the paper from his son and read it over, giving thought to some parts.

When he finished, he handed it back, " Well son, it appears that whatever mutant mole you've found, it's going to die in the next few days."

A loud bump came from the ceiling above as Skoodge angrily beat on the floor. There was no way that ZiM could die. Not here. Not on this filthy planet.

Dib gave a nervous smile to his dad, " Uh… I… found the puppy!! And he's upstairs playing ball!! Better go join him…"

The child broke out into a run as he scurried up the stairs. When he got back up the stairs, he slowly peeked around the doorframe to see Skoodge sobbing into hands.

As alien as this being was, he had feelings, something Dib didn't see out of ZiM very much, unless he was just angry.

Dib slowly walked up to Skoodge, putting a hand on his shoulder, " Skoodge… I'm sorry, but there's nothing we can do…"

Skoodge glared behind his hands.

" We can't help Z-"

Skoodge grabbed Dib around the throat, " You really don't understand, DO you?! You haven't even seen what he's going through right now!!"

Dib tried to pull Skoodge's claws off his neck, but the Irken held firm.

" I'll show you," Skoodge hissed through clenched teeth, " You're going to feel every bit as guilty if he dies…"

The invader placed a gloved hand over Dib's eyes and the human feel unconscious. Feeling the human go limp in his grasp, Skoodge lessened the pressure and began to drag Dib to ZiM's house.

**I feel no pain for limp Dib… R&R's please…**


	3. You've Taken It Seven Times Already!

**I'm so… TIRED!! But I must continue…**

Skoodge's eyes were ablaze as he kicked the front door of ZiM's house open, Dib still hanging limp in his arms. If this human was going to try nothing to help Skoodge's best and only friend, he would put guilt and sorrow into his heart instead.

A frantic little robot slapped himself on Skoodge's leg and cried, " FAT MASTER!! ZiM go all coughy again!!"

Skoodge tore off his wig and contacts, threw Dib on the couch and slammed the door, " It's O.K., GIR," he patted the robot on the head, " ZiM's just… not well right now…"

GIR looked up at Skoodge and hugged him, " Why he all not good?"

Skoodge picked the robot up, " It just happens…"

GIR nuzzled into Skoodge's chest, " Master will get better… he do that…"

Dib stirred on the couch and slowly opened his eyes. Skoodge hovered himself over the boy, an evil glare set upon his face.

Dib shut his eyes and reopened them to take a double take, but still saw the hate filled glare from the Irken.

The human rolled over, " Five more minutes…"

" ZiM doesn't have five minutes," Skoodge hissed, " you're going to see him now."

The invader pulled Dib to his feet and began to drag the struggling human to the refrigerator. Dib would have given anything to be shown the inner workings of ZiM's base, even a brainwashing guided tour, but an angry tour guide was about as bad as Gaz without her pizza. Any other day to be forcefully dragged through ZiM's base would've been heaven.

The refrigerator door opened with a 'hiss' and Skoodge stepped inside first, Dib still trying to get away. The back of the fridge slid into the floor and they proceeded further, a sickly feel in the air. A harsh cough rang through the hallway followed by a pain staked growl and curse.

When Skoodge came to a large purple door, he turned to Dib, " You're going to be very disturbed. I don't think you'll be able to eat for a month."

Dib gulped as the door was pushed open. He gasped as he saw ZiM, trying his best to rest in his bed. His skin was a sickly mint green and his eyes were blood red with dark green eyelids half covering them. His antennae were limply hanging on either side and it looked as if ZiM was straining to breathe.

Dib took a step back, his hands covering his mouth in shock. He looked at Skoodge and then back to ZiM, running into the room to look at what his enemy had been turned into.

ZiM's eyes watched Dib run next to him, staring into his enemy, trying to decipher the look plastered about his face, " What are you doing here," ZiM cringed in pain, then tried to relax, " Dib-worm? Come to laugh at my misery? Well go a… ahead… ZiM can't really s… stop you."

Dib shook his head, " Skoodge brought me here. He said if I couldn't help then I could at least feel guilty…"

ZiM tried to smile, but it quickly turned into another cringe.

Skoodge came in from behind Dib and placed his hand on ZiM's forehead, " You're feverish again."

ZiM just snorted and turned away, " Just give up and save yourself the wasted time, Skoodge, ZiM is dead as it is."

Skoodge turned towards a desk off in the corner and bundled something together, turning around and placing it on ZiM's forehead, " Not if it kills me."

Dib took a closer look at the bundled object and realized it was a tightly bound ice pack, that looked as if it had been tied up previously and interrogated, " Um… you guys are an advanced alien species. Can't you fix this?"

Skoodge shook his head as he pushed a thermometer in ZiM's mouth, " Dib, you know what cancer is, right?"

Dib rolled his eyes, " Yeah."

" Well it's not that," Skoodge replied quickly as he watched the thermometer rise, " Imagine it ten times worse, minus three and five times that, then add twenty-five."

Dib's eyes widened, " That bad?"

Skoodge shook his head, " Not even close."

The thermometer in ZiM's mouth began to droop and Skoodge glared, " ZiM. You're lazing off, keep it under your tongue."

ZiM glared back, " Yuv tak'n it serven tims all eddy!!"

Dib raised a brow, " What did he say?"

Skoodge sighed, " 'You've taken it seven times all ready,' yes, I know, just once more. You weren't this warm when I left you here last."

ZiM began mumbling something and Skoodge finally pulled out the thermometer, sighing again when he saw the temperature displayed on its screen: 109 degrees.

Skoodge turned back to the desk and poured a bottle of something into a small spoon, turning around again, breathing deeply as if preparing himself, " O.K., ZiM, pretend it's something else…"

ZiM's antennae stood on end, from lifeless to alert, " NO WAY!! ZIM IS NOT DRINKING THAT AGAIN!!"

Dib jumped at ZiM's sudden burst of life.

Skoodge held the spoon firmly, " You're gonna drink it and you're gonna like it."

ZiM sat up and crossed his arms, " You want a repeat of LAST time?! I'll go that far and farther!!"

Skoodge pushed ZiM back on the bed and shoved the spoon into ZiM mouth, pulling it back out quickly after the fluid left its carrier. ZiM's antennae went crooked and zigzagged, one of his eyes twitching as he swallowed.

He quickly went into a fit and threw himself off the bed, " ARG!! You've lessened my lifespan!! ZiM will now DIE because of you!!"

Skoodge smiled, " You're welcome, now get back in bed, you need to rest-"

" Never!!" ZiM threw his arms in the air, " I'LL RESIST!! ZiM WILL NEVER GO DOWN!!"

Dib just watched as his enemy began more fits about his sickness, " I never thought ZiM could be so… childish. It's just medicine and bed rest, how bad can both be so bad?"

ZiM pulled himself back into the bed and sat up, arms crossed and a glare on his face.

Skoodge set the spoon back on the desk, " It makes ZiM feel weak."

ZiM gave a small grunt and flung himself back into the covers, lazily thinking of how he could dispose of that wretched medicine sitting just feet away from him.

Dib giggled, " Weak? Everything gets sick at some point. It just happens."

Skoodge shook his head, " Not like this."

Dib hovered over ZiM, " Well can't you call the Tallests for help?"

Skoodge knocked over the bottle of medicine, which was a victory for ZiM, and ZiM began choking on his own spit.

Dib swallowed, " Was it… something I said?"

The two Irkens just stared with wide eyes and nodded.

**Ahh, medicine. Every child and ZiM's most hated enemy… UNLESS it is Motrin… or Ludens… then it is candy… R&R please…**


	4. Losing Respect

**(awkward silence enters here)**

The two Irkens glared at the human now.

Dib began to feel very uncomfortable at this point, " Umm… what did I say?"

ZiM pulled the covers over his head and Skoodge began cleaning up the bottle of medicine off the floor, " We don't answer to the Tallests any more. They've banished us."

Dib gaped, " Banished? How can you two be banished?! Skoodge, you're their poster boy for whatever and ZiM… well, I can understand ZiM, maybe."

ZiM peeked out from under his covers, " They just didn't like me or my persistence. They were jealous of ZiM…"

Skoodge patted ZiM on the head, " Yes, yes they were," ZiM swatted Skoodge's hand away and buried himself under the blankets.

The fat invader smiled and looked up at Dib, " They called a few days ago…" ZiM peeked out again as Skoodge went on, " And… it didn't go so well…"

_ ZiM's computer screen lit up and his Tallests' faces were suddenly put on screen, as lazy and bored looking as ever. Skoodge was observing one of ZiM's robot bees, when he noticed them staring at him._

_Skoodge shuffled his feet, " Um… hi, my Tallests…"_

_They each raised a brow, Red hanging a claw in his mouth, " Uh… didn't we kill you?"_

_Skoodge beamed, " Yeah, but I'm all better now!! Though you did say you'd promote me if I completed that evaluation."_

_Purple shook his head, " Which you never did."_

_The fat little Irken became embarrassed, " Oh, er… yeah…"_

_One of the side doors in the lab opened and ZiM scurried in, oblivious to the Tallests as he ran up to one of the robot bee containers, " I'VE DONE IT!! ZiM IS VICTIRIOUS!!"_

_He threw his arms up in the air, Skoodge feeling a bit left out, " Um… what did you do?"_

_ZiM grinned, his zipper like teeth glinting because of the light coming of the computer screen, " The robot bees!! They're official USEFUL now!!"_

_Skoodge scratched his head, " How? They seem kind of… not good."_

" _Ah, but that's the best part," ZiM replied, slapping a hand on Skoodge's back, " Here's what we do. We fill their stingers full of cone shell poison and then release them on the populace!! They'll never see it coming and then ZiM WILL BE CROWNED RULER OF EARTH!!"_

_Skoodge rolled his eyes and smiled as ZiM went into an evil laugh._

_As ZiM began to relax he took a deep breath, " Ah, yes it is perfect. With the deadliest poison coursing through the veins of the humans, there'll be nothing to stop ZiM from ruling!! I'd better inform the Tallests."_

_Red sighed, " You already have, ZiM."_

_ZiM spun around and saw his mighty leaders staring at him from the computer screen; he smiled, " Well, hello, my Tallests!! ZiM is pleased that you called, now ZiM can retell his mighty plan to you!! It is genius…"_

_Purple nodded, " Yes, we're sure it is, but that's not why we called."_

_ZiM's antennae perked, " Promotion?"_

_Red raised an eye, " Er, no."_

" _Vacation?"_

_Purple shook his head, " No."_

_ZiM thought for a second, " A present? You got me a present didn't you?"_

_Red sighed, " No, we're officially banishing you."_

_ZiM's eyes widened, his antennae flat against his head, " W… what?"_

_Purple smiled, " Since you don't seem to get it when we already tell you you're banished, we're OFFICIALLY banishing you."_

_Skoodge held in a gasp as he saw ZiM slowly start to droop into depression, " But… his plan it's-"_

" _Brilliant?" Red interrupted, " Yes, for ZiM's it's actually quite impressive. But that's beyond the point. ZiM's banished and you with him Skoodge for not taking the opportunity to redeem yourself and kill him."_

_ZiM looked at Skoodge, " You… kill ZiM?"_

_Skoodge shuffled his feet again, " They said I had three months to get rid of you before they just called and ruined your life. I… couldn't do it."_

Skoodge shook his head, " I could never do that to ZiM. We grew up together and though he scared me sometimes and got me into mortal danger a lot, I just couldn't do it."

Dib had pulled a chair out of a closet at the end of the room and brought it by ZiM's bedside so he wouldn't have to stand so much, " I don't think I could do that either. What happened after that?"

ZiM propped himself up using his pillows, " Things just spiraled from there. The first few hours were just confusing, then painful…"

Skoodge took a deep breath, " It went something like this…"

_ Skoodge frantically dialed. He didn't care anymore. As long as he could get help he'd be happy. The computer screen lit up with the red Irken national symbol, then to the Tallests._

_Red glared, " I thought we had your calls blocked!!"_

_Skoodge felt a twang of fear inside him. But this wasn't about him right now, ZiM was throwing up blood. It seemed like a normal sickness when he just started to throw up, but when his Irken green blood became part of the mixture, Skoodge knew something was wrong._

_The fat little Irken pushed his fear down, " I need medical assistance out here, now."_

_The Tallests were surprised that Skoodge, a banished Irken was requesting something of them._

_Purple's eyes narrowed, " Do you really think we're going to send help? If you're sick Skoodge, go sleep it off-"_

" _ZiM'S DYING!!"_

_Both Red and Purple jumped back from the screen in shock at Skoodge's sudden burst of anger. The Irken's face was glaring down at them, his eyes redder than normal and his face as dark as space._

" _ZiM has done more than enough to receive help," Skoodge growled, " He's put every effort into making you two good and happy. Send… help."_

_Red hung his claw in his mouth, " Did you say… dying?"_

_Skoodge relaxed a bit, " Yes. He needs-"_

_Both Tallests cheered running around their ship in excitement. Their crew clapped out of enjoyment for their leaders._

_Skoodge's heart fell, " My… Tallests?"_

_Purple stopped at the computer screen as Red ran around the room, " Oh, we are so watching this!! How long has he been sick?"_

" _A few hours, but-"_

_Purpled whooped for joy and ran about the room, " WE'RE GONNA WATCH ZiM DIE!! WHOOOOOO!!"_

_The crew cheered and began setting a course for Earth. Skoodge's face began to look more worried as he heard ZiM throwing up again down the hall._

" _ZiM?!" Skoodge called, " MORE BLOOD?!"_

_ZiM nodded to himself, " A LOT!!" he called back._

_Skoodge turned back to his leaders, " Please, my Tallests, ZiM really needs help, I'm begging you send a doctor, please!!"_

_The Tallests stared at Skoodge for a moment, then burst out laughing._

Skoodge shook his head, " I've lost all respect for them since then."

Dib nodded, " I can see why…"

**I lost respect for them after seeing the first episode. R&R's please.**


	5. Enter Tak

**Why do I bother writing this again?? Oh, right, R&R's.**

ZiM pushed himself further back into his pillows, soaking up the coolness of them, " Hmm… even if I should end like this, I'm glad I was able to have such an eventful life…"

Skoodge glared and placed a hand on ZiM's forehead, " You're not dying yet, ZiM. Not yet."

Dib took in a long breath and let it out again quickly, " Is… there anything I can do? Those results… maybe-"

" I just needed a confirmation of the worst, Dib," Skoodge interrupted as ZiM began to dose off, an after effect of the medicine, " Just… to know if I was right to think he was going."

A loud knocking from the upstairs caught Skoodge and Dib's attention.

ZiM awoke in surprise, " Demon babies?" he asked groggily.

" No…" Skoodge replied slowly.

He opened the bedroom's door and ran down the hall. Dib stared down at ZiM. His enemy was so… frail. After all the times they had fought, gotten bruised and beaten, ripped lips from well-aimed punches, it all came down to frailty. Dib would come to school the next day bruised and cut all over, while ZiM would be healed without a scratch. The human child thought of this as an excuse to have ZiM studied by the school biology enthusiast, but she wouldn't take his word for it.

ZiM's breathing was getting shallow and more paced as he began to dose again. Dib was right there. He could just reach out and touch him. An alien. Sick. Reminded the boy of E.T., only ZiM had come to his planet to destroy it, not gather plant life.

A yell down the hall caused Dib to look up. Skoodge was arguing with someone. Then a female's voice cut through the air. Dib froze. Tak. Her voice was quick and brief, before Dib could hear it coming closer, Skoodge still yelling back at her. Tak yelled something back and kicked the bedroom door open.

ZiM shot up, " IT WAS NEN, I SWEAR!!"

" ZiM!!" Tak growled at him.

ZiM stared at Tak for a moment, then thought that she wasn't a waste of his resting time and plopped back onto his comfy pillows, rubbing his back into them.

Tak raised an eye, " Are you IGNORING me, ZiM?!"

ZiM nodded, turning his back to her.

Tak's eyes flashed as she pulled her fist back for a punch, but then she saw Dib, " What are YOU doing here?! This is an IRKEN matter only!! No degenerates!!"

Dib glared, " I'm NOT a degenerate!! I'm the smartest person this planet has to offer!!" he then stopped and thought this over for a moment, " Wow…" the human said, shocked, " that is just SAD!!"

Tak shook her head quickly, " Yes, it is, now leave before I lose my temper."

ZiM giggled, " What? More than you already have?"

Tak's eyes seemed to turn a darker purple as she pulled her fist back again. ZiM's eyes widened and he braced himself for a painful leave from this world. But a yell brought ZiM out of his state as he watched Skoodge grab one of Tak's fingers.

" LET GO!!" Tak made to pull her hand and heard her finger crack a little, " AAAARG!! Skoodge, STOP IT!! That's my finger!!"

Skoodge gave a small smile as his grip on Tak's finger increased, " And that's ZiM you're trying to hurt. I'm not letting go until you calm down… A lot…"

Tak looked at Skoodge, then to ZiM, then to Dib and finally took a deep breath, nodding at the bigger Irken. Skoodge's smile widened and he let go, Tak cradling her precious claw of a finger.

" Now," Skoodge said calmly, " can I explain before you try to kill ZiM?"

Tak took in a quick breath, " Fine," she said sarcastically, " fill me with the knowledge you're holding, Skoodge."

Skoodge rolled his eyes, " When you called earlier, Tak, I tried to tell you that ZiM was in no condition to fight you," Skoodge pointed to the sick Irken, " Is this enough proof for you now?"

Tak crossed her arms, " Humph…" the female Irken looked ZiM up and down quickly then turned away, upset she couldn't exact her revenge on him.

ZiM glared at Skoodge, " YOU DARE TELL THE TAK-BEAST ZiM CAN NOT FIGHT?!" He pointed angrily at the fat Irken, " CURSE YOOOOOOOOOOU!!"

Skoodge patted ZiM's head tenderly earning him a growl from his tiny friend and an air swat at his hand. ZiM gave Skoodge a threatening hiss before diving under the covers of his bed mumbling angrily at Skoodge's foolishness.

**Again, why are you still reading this?? Just R&R, it makes me check this thing more often…**


	6. Metal

**Wow, you're STILL here… Umm… Carry on.**

Tak tapped her foot angrily whilst tenderly massaging her finger, "All right, Skoodge, I'll humor you. WHEN did ZiM start throwing up?"

Skoodge shifted uncomfortably, "About twelve hours ago."

Dib found himself writing over and over in his head 'I wish I could just go home and forget all this'. ZiM watched Dib, his beady eyes glaring hatefully at the human. Dib looked up and his eyes connected with ZiM's. The boy shifted uncomfortable, as Skoodge had done and moved across the room to sit in a different chair. ZiM's eyes followed him and their eyes met as soon as Dib sat down.

Dib grumbled, hanging off the chair, "Umm… Skoodge?"

Skoodge stopped in mid sentence and turned to the human, "Huh?"

The human ran over and hid behind the bigger Irken, ZiM's eyes following him all the way, "Get him to stop staring at me!!"

ZiM grinned, " ZiM should have tried this a LONG time ago!!" he stared harder at the boy, as if trying to burn holes in him.

Skoodge picked up a new bottle of medicine and held it menacingly by the cap. ZiM's eyes widened and he turned away, seemingly embarrassed.

Skoodge then turned back to Tak, sighing, "I tried to talk to the tallests, but…" he gave another long sigh, "they're coming out here to watch ZiM's death. They'll be here in a few hours and I think they're expecting some sort of sick show…"

Tak nodded somewhat thoughtfully, "They'll probably get it too. The charts you sent me on our last call were interesting. I had my computers analyze them."

Skoodge gulped, "And?"

Tak looked at ZiM, who was intently listening to them now, "ZiM's got Pernalious refecticuss. What I don't really understand is that ZiM would have to have eaten or been injected with a living solution of the virus to contract it. And since you said he hasn't eaten anything in a couple of weeks, I highly doubt that he mindlessly injected himself with it…"

Skoodge nodded, rubbing his eyes. The Irken felt Dib tug on shirt.

He didn't look up, "What, Dib?"

The boy gulped, "Are you still going to destroy the Earth? In a few hours I mean…"

Skoodge shook his head, looking up to watch ZiM, who had quickly assembled a pile of rubber bands and was aiming carefully at the new medicine bottle, "No. I just said that to get you to-"

Dib stood quickly, "Great!! I'm leavin'!!"

He strode confidently to the door, "Good-bye, and so long!!"

Tak glared at the human, as his stride from the room seemed almost cheery, "I just want to bop him in the nose for that…"

ZiM shrugged, giving up on the rubber bands and kicking back the covers, "ZiM WILL CATCH THE DIB!!"

And with that, the sick little Irken hopped out of bed and bounded after the human, Tak and Skoodge hot on his tail. Before Dib could reach the end of the hallway, he found himself painfully tackled by ZiM and then, randomly, power-glomped by GIR who apparently fell from the ceiling.

GIR screeched enthusiastically, "I CAUGHT HIM, MASTER!! COOKIES FOR ALL!!"

ZiM stared at his SIR as he started to break dance, rather well, and looked at GIR's compositions. Metal.

But what could this mean to him? Skoodge picked ZiM off the floor and with Tak's help, led him back to his room and into bed.

Metal.

The word rang in ZiM's brain like a thing that rings. He could faintly hear Skoodge talking to Tak about treating the virus as best as possible, but ZiM's concentration on the word rendered the speech worthless.

Skoodge found himself sighing once again as turned to stare at his friend, "Treatment for this could be incredibly painful though, Tak. I mean… _Pernalious refecticuss_?! Only one other case was presented and it was only one case… One case means no cure. What other alternative could we take?"

ZiM's brain thought harder about the single word and Skoodge's question had a great solution behind it.

ZiM smiled, "Metal…"

**Hmm… Metal. What could he be thinking?? R&R.**


	7. My Tallests

**Back by popular demand?? -looks around uncomfortably then slinks away…-**

Skoodge stared at ZiM, "Metal? What?"

ZiM sat back comfortably into his large pillow, then sat up again, "If ZiM is good, can ZiM go down into the labs?"

Both Tak and Skoodge blinked, ignoring Dib's pleas for mercy as GIR nibbled on his hair scythe, but it was Tak who spoke, "Why, ZiM?" her eyes narrowed, "What are you up to?"  
ZiM leaned in closer, "ZiM must prepare for the last minutes. ZiM will be good, ZiM swears!!"

Dib finally managed to roll into the room, GIR clinging to his do, "GET IT OFF!! GET IT OFF!!"

Tak slammed her arm into the boy's stomach causing GIR to fly off of Dib's head and onto ZiM's bed.

ZiM snatched him up, "I'll even take GIR with me!!"

GIR squeaked with excitement and Dib coughed to breathe, "Take him… let'em go…"

ZiM's eyes pleaded with Skoodge's and finally, the larger Irken sighed a heavy defeated sigh, "All right, but be careful with yourself or-"

ZiM didn't even wait for his friend to finish. He had already bolted out the door, GIR squealing excitedly under his arms.

It had felt like hours since Skoodge had last seen or heard from ZiM. The shiny look in his eyes as he left… Skoodge shook his head. Hope at a time like this seemed impossible, even if he had seen it in ZiM's eyes.

Tak entered the living room, her dark purple eyes studying Skoodge's still and unmoving pose, "Hey."

Skoodge blinked but he said nothing as he allowed himself to slide back into the couch.

She expected this, smiling to herself as she sat next to him, "I gave Dib something to keep him asleep. I'll deal with him after," she paused, sighing as she looked away, "After he's passed…"

Skoodge suddenly bolted up and punched the side of the couch, "He's not going to, Tak," he grumbled cogently, "He's always made it through. He's-"

The Irken sat back as he chocked back the pain in the back of his throat.

Tak folded her arms as she sat back, turning to him, "Not this time," she looked at objects around the room, "There's nothing he can do this time."

"Oh, yee of little faith."

Both Irkens turned towards the kitchen and saw Dib smirking at them. He had a small plastic baggie with two yellow and blue pills in them.

The human scoffed, "You didn't really think I'd swallow them, did you."

He paused but they said nothing.

Dib shook his head, "I hate ZiM. A lot. That's no secret. But even I can recognize his strengths. Don't think he's out yet. I've seen some pretty incredible things happen to him and he's made it out okay."

Skoodge cupped his face in his hands but all three looked up when they heard a soft clinking noise and a distinct sniff. GIR walked slowly into the room, tears in his robotic blue eyes.

He sat between Tak and Skoodge and hugged the larger Irken, "Fat-master?" he almost whispered, "ZiM don't like me no more."

Skoodge cautiously laid a hand on GIR's head, "W… What?"

GIR snuggled closer and even Dib made his way towards the small group, "Master got all mad and he said the bad words and grabbed his side then he tell me to go aways and tell you not to come down cause he be all right."

Skoodge glared, "If… if he thinks," his hands balled up into fists, "That little-"

He moved to get up, but both Tak and Dib stopped him, "Not this time, Skoodge," Tak muttered, "Let him be by himself for a bit. It will be his last moments working on Irk knows what."

Dib nodded at the comment, wondering if he really wanted to remember ZiM as a beaten, sickly shell. The doorbell rang and it was the human who got up to answer it. As he strode to the door, something tugged at his stomach because one, ZiM was about to die in a couple of hours and two, ZiM never had visitors.

As Dib took the cool, metal doorknob into his hand, these thoughts quickly went away. In fact, as he opened the door, he found himself in utter shock. The tallests just stared down at him.

… **Wow, gaspers. Tak and Skoodge have actually lost faith in ZiM's recovery. And Dib defends him. Realistically, Dib probably would have chucked the pills at Tak… but he still has them…**


	8. Popcorn Pieces

**-Yawns then blinks- WHY?! WHY ARE YOU STILL HERE?! … Know what? Don't answer that…**

The tallests watched Dib as he shifted uncomfortably.

Purple closed one of his eyes as he studied the boy, "Hey… you're not hiding ZiM behind your big head, are you?"

The human blinked, then glared, "I wouldn't hide ZiM behind my head even if he had asked!!"

Dib turned to Tak and Skoodge and they shook their heads in disappointment.

Dib's eyes widened as he turned back to the tallests, "I mean, MY HEAD'S NOT BIG!!"

Tak and Skoodge then smiled to themselves, standing up to face their leaders.

Tak saluted firmly, her eyes engaged with theirs, "Sirs, it is with the greatest honor to receive your presence."

Skoodge shrugged and waved, "Umm… hi?"

Red hovered past Dib, who was now going rabid with seething anger, turning to Tak, "Where's ZiM? We only flew out here to see his death."

GIR jumped to the floor with a 'clank', "Master no feel good!! You no see master!!"

Purple's PAK handed him a popped bag of popcorn, "But… I made popcorn to eat while watching him suffer."

Dib came out of his rabid state to watch the argument, but found himself greatly amused when the tallests attention suddenly fell on Skoodge, the poster boy for Irken galactic conquest forced into banishment.

Red's voice boomed throughout the house, "Do you know how long we've been waiting for this?! If you had just done the deed, we wouldn't have had to fly out here!!"

Purple joined in, flicking pieces of popcorn at both Skoodge and GIR, but the little robot had taken the opportunity to wise up and eat the pieces that fell near him.

Skoodge batted a piece away from his face, which, in turn, fell into GIR's waiting mouth, "How would you like it if you were told to kill your co-tallest? You were asking me to kill someone I've known since smeethood!!"

Tak stepped between her leaders and the large Irken, "Look, my tallests, none of that is an issue anymore seeing as ZiM won't be here much longer."

Dib sighed, and the Irkens turned to stare at him.

Red glared at him, "You have something to say, human?"

Dib thought for a moment. Yes, he did have something to say. Something along the lines of 'Holy moose leavings!! So!! Many!! ALIENS!!'. But he was wisely bottling up that comment in case it made them leave. He also had wanted to ask if he could leave and never be bothered with this situation ever again.

But as the young human boy opened his mouth to answer, there was a power shortage and amidst the darkness he found himself say, "You guys don't turn all nasty and thirsty for blood in the dark do you? Cause I would really like to leave if you do… I really would…"

Tak's dark figure walked up to Dib, her eyes shining, "Dib, that is an awful thing to say."

The human shrugged, reaching into his pocket for a small pen-flashlight, "I know," he turned it on and the light gently floated out of the pen.

Dib guided the light towards the windows and pulled at the window screen until it pulled itself up, allowing natural light to filter in, "There, that's better."

One of the computer screens pulled itself out of its little hiding place, and 'yawned', "Skoodge? ZiM's doing stuff and it's draining my power reserves… Can you stop him or something? I wanted to sleep for a bit longer."

Skoodge raised a 'brow', "That's… all you ever do, though."

The screen put itself away, but the computer voice lingered, "Whatever."

The large Irken sighed, turning to Tak, "I'd better go check on him. I'll be right back-"

Purple hovered after him, "And we're coming with you!! I didn't pop this corn for nothin'!!"

Skoodge turned to give his best evil eye, but Tak stopped him, "Maybe it would be best if my tallests stays here for a bit and indulged themselves in some Earth programming? I'm sure GIR could show you two how the TV works…"

GIR gasped and jumped for the remote, "This button turns it ON!! And THIS button turns it MONKEY!!"

Skoodge slinked away from the living room and to the toilet where he had hoped to get down to the labs as fast as possible. As he stepped into the device and flushed, he found this to be a most difficult task.

The toilet did not respond…

**NO!! NOT THE TOILET!! … R&R's please, and maybe toilet will work again??**


	9. Down to the Labs

**Umm… yay? You're still reading this?? Is it REALLY that good? (ask yourselves that…)**

Skoodge's eyes widened as he tried to flush the toilet again. It still wouldn't respond.

Tak swept herself into the room, her eyes brimming with triumph, "I think they'll be occupied for…" she studied Skoodge's situation, "What… did you jiggle the handle?"

The large Irken shook his head, "No…" he gently jiggled the handle.

The toilet gurgled, but the lift refused to take him down.

Skoodge jumped out of the disguised lift and inspected the base of the toilet, looking for any dents or cracks that may have been preventing it from working. He tapped it in several places as gently as possible then closed his eyes, his antennae vibrating as they tried to pick up any unfamiliar noises.

Dib walked quickly into the kitchen and found himself surveying the odd spectacle, "You know, you should really take that thing out to dinner first."

Skoodge jumped, letting go of the toilet's base and coughed, "I, uh… I was just checking the lift… it's not working…"

Tak rolled her eyes and turned towards the trashcan, lifting the lid, "You DID know this was here, didn't you?"

The trashcan lift activated, buzzing in what appeared to be anticipation.

Skoodge nodded his head slowly, "Umm… maybe I sort of kinda forgot?"

The large Irken scuttled over to the spare lift and hopped in, feeling somewhat cramped as Tak accompanied him.

Skoodge stared at her, "What are you doing? There's hardly enough room in here for me!!"

Tak glared at him, "What's your point? So what if we get stuck? It's better than sending you down there alone to deal with ZiM. With your… _amazing_ charisma, you may just end up sending ZiM into a ravenous rampage."

Dib stared at the both of them. This would have been a good opportunity for him to leave and not have to deal with any consequences, but outside it suddenly began to rain hard and an annoyed girl's voice pierced the air, "DIIIIIIIIIIIIIB!!"

Dib then found himself accompanying the both of them, looking at both Irkens as he got comfortable between them, "So… going down??"

The lift slowly descended, even with the extra weight, down into the depths of the labs while Dib's sister punched her way through the front door, her hair matted and wet.

She opened a single eye to tallest Purple, who hid behind his popcorn, "YOU!!" she pointed.

Purple squealed and pulled GIR from the side of the couch, "HERE!! TAKE HIM, HE'S THE ONE YOU WANT!!"

Gaz snorted smacking GIR to the side, "I'm not after you," her fists were clenched tightly, "I know my brother is here somewhere because my dad saw him leaving with ZiM fat assistant or whatever. Now where is he? He's supposed to be home by now. My dad only sent me because his assistant is in the hospital with burns all over him."

Red stared at the small human. She was terrifying, but he could tell when a great deal of respect was to be given to a smaller person.

The tallest hovered off of the couch and stood in front of Gaz, blocking Purple from her view, "He went down to the labs with Skoodge and Tak and if you don't mind, I would like you to escort my co-tallest and I down there as well."

Gaz folded her arms and watched GIR close the front door, "Pfft, I do mind. Why can't you go down there yourself?"

Purple stood alongside Red, trying regain his confidence, "Well, we don't exactly know the layout of this place and you've obviously been here before."

Gaz turned back to both tallests, "And this means I'm supposed to help you or something?! Screw this, I'm going down by myself!!"

The young girl strode past both petrified tallests and made her way to the toilet.

Red followed her quickly, as it may have been his last chance, "Look, ZiM is dying-"

"Finally," Gaz muttered.

Red stared at her, "ZiM's dying and Purple and I only flew out here to see this great event!!"

Purple shoved a fistful of popcorn into his mouth, "We have to leave soon!!"

Gaz stared at the both of them, hatred building up inside her, finally breathing, "Jump in and don't make me change my mind…"

GIR watched the small group heading towards the toilet. Toilet meant they were looking for master. Master meant candy!!

GIR bounded after them and smacked himself to the back of Purple's head, "Lead the way, candy masters!!"

As cramped as the toilet lift was, Gaz was still able to reach over and pull the handle. As the lift descended it became roomier and the tallests were able to back themselves away from the terrifying human. Gaz paid them no attention and as soon as the lift stopped, she walked out following what sounded like the voices of Tak and the fat Irken. Dib's voice cut through, but her pace never broke rhythm.

Gaz stopped at what appeared to be a long hall with a wide, gapping doorway.

Dib seemed to skip out of it, looking behind him instead of in front which gave his sister the easy chance of grabbing him by his collar, "Diiiiiiiiiib…"

The boy found himself cringing in her grasp, "Umm… yes?"

**GASPERS!! DIB, FIND THE MANLINESS WHAT LIES IN YOUR…. Peanuts…**


	10. Candy Man

**Because you guys seem to love this so much… and it's HAS been a while. I present the next chapter.**

Dib's hands were trembling at his sides as his sisters cold gaze burned into him like one of ZiM's well aimed lasers. There was a dark silence surrounding all seven figures, but a loud cough finally echoed through the hallways.

Skoodge perked, "It's ZiM!! But where is he?"

Gaz said nothing as she began dragging Dib from the scene and back to the elevator.

Red stared down at the fat Irken, "You mean you haven't found him yet?"

Tak saw Skoodge's nervousness, "No, my tallests. ZiM's actually hid himself quite well."

Dib finally began to struggle under his sister's grasp, "Gaz!! Why do you care if I go home or not?"

They were both in the lift now and it started to ascend; Gaz glared at her brother, "Dad wants you home."

Dib tried to sink down to watch the Irkens begin to converse, but the lift finally got to the point where he was out of range, "You know he forgets after a while. So what's the REAL reason?"

The purple haired girl's hands shook with fury, "He's been asking for you for the past hour!! Don't test me Dib, he doesn't forget unless he really wants something."

Dib felt his sister let go of his shirt, "Ah… I see…"

Skoodge almost felt like a sorry sack of failed laser weasels. His tallests were badmouthing his efforts to find the egotistical, insane, hyper excuse for an Irken. Not too much of a job, right?

"Wrong," Red went on, "to think you could do such a simple job as to find him."

Purple tried to speak through a mouthful of popcorn, "Yeah."

Red glared at him, "Swallow first, Pur, or no more popcorn."

The co-tallest nibbled quietly after that.

Skoodge finally took a breath, "Look, when ZiM wants to be found, he can make a thumbtack shine like a spotlight. But… when he doesn't…" he trailed off.

"ZiM's just hard to find when he doesn't want to be," Tak finished for him, "I've wanted to see ZiM dead for the longest time since he ruined my chances on Devastis, but having him killed in bad health isn't the same as tackling him at full strength."

Both tallests stared down at her.

"Would it really be the same," she continued, "to have ZiM die this way rather than having the honor of taking him out when he's equally strong?"

The tallests held their gaze, but it was Purple who spoke first, "Uh, no. See, ZiM would be gone and one more problem would be eliminated from the universe."

GIR suddenly popped up from behind Purple's shoulder, "Where be the candy man?!"

All four Irkens stared in silent horror as another severe cough echoed throughout the halls.

--

"The TRASH?!" Dib roared.

He had just made it home to find his father was complaining that he hadn't taken out the garbage.

Dib massaged his temples, "Let me get this straight: you had Gaz interrupt one of nature's greatest moments to have me take out the TRASH?!"

The professor laughed heartily, "Now, Dib, this 'moment' you speak of. Was it scientific?"  
Dib felt his right eye twitch uncontrollably, "Yeah, ZiM's alien body is dying!!"

The professor shook his head and began messing with his newest re-invention, the waffle-toaster, "Poor boy. Had the greatest listening skills though he possessed no ears."

Dib finally screamed bloody murder and scooped up the bag of trash that had been waiting for him, running outside to dump it into the can as he sprinted back to ZiM's base.

--

ZiM could hear them talking. He welded something together then wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead. It had been a long time since he had sweat like this. His computer had a timer displayed on its screen registering 0 hours and 24 minutes.

The voices of his leaders echoed again and he distinctly heard the phrase 'one of the greatest opportunities to be missed'. That had to be Red speaking. And he knew it was about his passing.

ZiM giggled unsurely to himself and patted the lump of welded metals, "ZiM can try," he hoarsely whispered, "cause ZiM never fails to disappoint himself."

The voices were close he knew, but they weren't going to find him. Not until he was ready for them to find him.

--

Dib kicked ZiM's front door in, then slammed it shut. He was sure everyone in the base heard it, but he didn't care. He nearly slid into the refrigerator as he entered the kitchen but made his epic dive into the trashcan as it began its descent.

The boy had many mixed feelings at the moment. The realization that his worst enemy was dying was the most powerful one, however, seeing as he did nothing to cause it but was now deeply integrated within the event. Dib punched the passing walls. He felt the guilt.

The lift had barely passed the ceiling before Dib jumped from it, not wanting to wait for it to land on its own. Neither the tallests, Tak or Skoodge could be seen, but a scuffling of metallic feet could be heard. GIR walked out from the hallway corner sniffing sadly.

He looked up at Dib, "Fat master, purple eyes and skinny tall masters no find candy man…"

Dib gulped, "Uh… yeah… sorry about that."

GIR sniffed again, his antenna perking a bit, "You know where candy master be?"

Dib shook his head, "Uhh… no."

The robot sulked again, but Dib began leading GIR back to the direction from which he came, "But if we can start looking again, we'll find the… candy… master."

GIR brightened, "YAY!! Then master will give me candy!!"

The robot bounded ahead of Dib. The boy went to say something, but held his tongue. It was best to keep his mouth shut and his ears and eyes open.

**Nothing new really given out, but now you know… ZiM's closer than led to believe…**


	11. Problems

**Ahh, I do this not for myself but you guys now seeing as I keep hearing 'POST OR BE CUPCAKED'!! Seeing as this should NOT happen, here is another chapter to fill your already tainted heads.**

Dib had managed, astoundingly, to keep pace with GIR who was now thoroughly convinced Dib was going to pull his master out from behind him with a loud 'surprise!!' attached to him. The human boy, however, was not aware of this. As Dib rounded a corner to keep his pursuit, he bumped right into Skoodge, who, in a surprised fit of shock, tossed a Vortian-made Irken screwdriver into the air narrowly missing tallest Red and Purple's heads before plummeting back down and only just missing pinning Dib into the metal floors permanently.

The boy sighed out of relief and allowed Tak to pull him back up; he shook a little, "T-thanks umm… where's GIR, I was following him while looking for you guys."

GIR popped his head out from Purple's popcorn bag with a squeak and then dove back in, Purple's eyes wide with anger, "HEY!! GET OUT OF THERE YOU LITTLE RAT!!"

Purple's hand followed the robot into the popcorny depths of the bag.

Red sighed and stood up as tall as he could, "Well, ZiM's computer refuses to hinder to our requests and has put itself into a sort of 'sleep mode'. It still does the basics opening and closing doors and what not, but it repudiates to tell us where ZiM is. Probably the little Irken's doing."

Purple was hard at working digging into his popcorn bag, his hand completely submerged and the popcorn itself rising up to cover his elbow, "Mhm… he was good at breaking things. Maybe he broke the computer."

"Which is why," Skoodge explained, holding up the screwdriver, "I got this. I'm going to open up the brain and download ZiM's location directly."

--

ZiM stifled a cough as he looked back up onto the computer screen. 0 hours and 11 minutes. Eleven had to be his lucky number. He set down his welding tool and wiped the sweat from his head for the final time, looking down triumphantly at his work. He was done early. The little Irken listened carefully, hearing Skoodge's last remark. He laughed slightly. Just in time, too, or else they would have found him. ZiM took in long, deep breaths and shut his eyes. Sweating and breathing would be just a couple of things he would miss.

--

The small group entered the brain room, and while Dib tried not to start goggling over all the hardware and machinery, Tak followed Skoodge via spider PAK and helped him set up their little operation.

Tallest Purple was elbow deep in his popcorn bag, muttering evil curses as he dug deeper. Red watched his companion with no conscious care in his eyes.

After a few minutes, Skoodge looked over his shoulder, "Hey, Dib? Think you can do me a BIG favor?"

Dib perked up, "Yeah, what's up?"

Tak answered for the fat Irken, "We need you to pull that lever over to your right. It's the biggest one."

Dib looked to his right finding that there were two small levers that he could easily pull down. However, the largest one was a protruding giant that he wasn't even sure ZiM could have used.

Dib opened his mouth a couple times before speaking, "This really, REALLY big one??"

Tak nodded then answered, "Yes, pull it when we tell you to."

Red saw Dib's hesitance and led him to the lever, "Here, _I'll_ help you."

Dib nodded and took hold of the lever from one side while Red took the other. Purple was oblivious to the entire ordeal, nearly shoulder deep into the bag now.

Skoodge connected a couple of the brain's wires to a small monitor and breathed in deeply, "O.K. ready… now!!"

Dib pulled down as hard as he could along with Tallest Red's help and a charge shuffled from the brain into the monitor. After the light settled, Dib looked to see Skoodge and Tak's triumphant faces. They knew where ZiM was.

--

ZiM coughed and sputtered. This wasn't right. It wasn't right at all. Lights were all around him, colors blending and hues becoming darker and lighter at sudden instances. This was NOT how he had planned it. Just as suddenly as the process had started he began wishing he had told someone, anyone, so that if something happened they would have been there. His head began throbbing and he shut his eyes tightly to avoid seeing anymore nauseating colors and shades. The computer screen above him beeped and he opened his eyes slowly to see that Skoodge had downloaded his location. ZiM breathed one last breath. Someone would be there. He shut his eyes softly and when he reopened them, he screamed, finding that he was now seeing though two sets of eyes.

--

Purple, being so preoccupied with his bag of popcorn, didn't hear the screams that echoed throughout the base. Everyone else did, however, and Red muttered angry words under his breath hoping he had not missed ZiM's death.

Skoodge unplugged his monitor and both he and Tak shuffled back onto the main platform, "Let's go," Skoodge said, deeply disturbed, "We still have some-"

The lights in the base flickered out and did not turn back on.

Skoodge gulped, "Time?"

Tak's eyes seemed to glow in the dark, "This is where my implants come in handy. Let's go, boys," she straightened out her shirt, "I'll be leading the way."

Before the group could exit the room there was a loud rumble.

Red's antennae flattened against his head, "Pur?" he shuddered, "I think we've got a problem."

Purple whimpered, "Yeah, we do," he peered into his bag, "That little robot ate all my popcorn!!"

**Huzzah, this chapter be complete. Happy now? Of COURSE not. You're the masses. The masses are never happy…**


	12. Chicken Dance

**Back already?? It's so scary you're still reading this… Oo**

Dib stifled a snicker at the purple eyed tallest's remark. ZiM would be dead in a few minutes and all he could think about was his popcorn. It mattered little, however, as he was still following his co-tallest and the rest of the group cautiously from the brain room. Tak's eyes were the little group's lifeline at this point, she being the only one intelligent enough to have bothered to schedule an appointment for these implants.

Dib had his penlight, but wasn't about to whip it out unless he started to feel something eating his toes. Skoodge had his hand holding on to Dib's collar, a sort of helpful guide seeing as Dib was the closest to Tak. Tak suddenly stopped and both Dib and Skoodge bumped into the person if front of them; Tak wasn't fazed.

"Quiet," she hissed, "… Do you hear that?"

Everyone stopped breathing for a moment to listen and heard the distinct crinkling and tapping noises running closer and closer to them. Purple gulped hard and clung to Red's shaking frame seeing as he had long since discarded the empty popcorn bag. The sound grew closer and louder as though the noise were all around them. The group bunched up together when a sputtered cough and gargle struck the air.

GIR then jumped from the shadows and latched himself to Red's head, popcorn bag placed over his own head with eyeholes punched out, "Do not be scaredy, peoples!! Captain Kernel lives again!! DEFENDER OF THE CORN AND BEYOND!!"

As soon as Dib was sure his heart was working, he swallowed quickly and detached Skoodge's claws which somehow had managed to imbed themselves into his back, "So… moving onward, yes?"

Tak nodded to herself, "Everyone keep together, especially you GIR-"

"Cap'n Kernel!!"

"… All right… Captain Kernel. We don't need you mucking about ruining our plans."

GIR blinked, "But there be no mud to play in."

Red thought deeply of removing the robot from the back of his head but also found that if someone psychopath considered the back of his head a good spot to whack him, GIR would end up getting the hit. This plan suited the tallest well, but was roused from his thoughts when his co-tallest tugged on his arm.

Red blinked an eye at him, "What?"

Purple's eyes were big and watery, "Red, where am I gunna get more popcorn?"

The red tallests's eyes were full of annoyance, "Does it look like I care? As far as I'm concerned when ZiM is dead we can finally leave."

Red's answer wasn't settling well with the other tallest, so he sighed and tried again, "You don't need popcorn to make a show out of ZiM's death. Besides, if we're lucky GIR's head-"

"Cap'n Kernel!!"

"… Captain… Kernel's… head can be used as a popcorn popper and holder."

Purple's eyes brightened, "O.K., we can try that!!"

Dib nudged tallest Red in the lower robe, "Could you be anymore heartless?"

Red scratched his chin and 'hmm'ed, "I suppose I could, but what would be the point? I need to save that heartlessness for something a little more drastic than this."  
Purple cocked his head, "But… this IS drastic."

Red smiled warmly and bent down to Dib's level, "Then yes."

The young human boy rolled his eyes and glared at the both of them, "You're horrible leaders, you know that?"

Purple stared sadly at his popcorn bag that was snuggly set around GIR's head, "We're not, we're just-"

"CAP'N KERNEL SEES THROUGH YOUR LIES!!" GIR smacked Purple in the back of the head, then giggled insanely, "Master will be happy!!"

"Shhh!!" Tak snapped as they neared a strangely bent wall, "There should be a secret knob or button that opens this."

GIR giggled, his tongue hung out lazily, "You gotta do the chicky dance to get in!!"

Dib stifled a laugh, and coughed to cover it up.

Skoodge stared at him, "Dib? What's this… chicky dance?"

Dib looked at GIR and smiled, "It's a ritualistic human dance that was performed after a new moon and, on rare occasions, after the death of exactly twelve chickens and a rooster."

Tak nodded thoughtfully, "So the computer senses our movements and compares it to the moves of the dance?"

Dib shrugged, "I suppose so."

Purple gasped, "And then we get to see ZiM die!! How do we dance it?"

The human was scream-laughing inside, "Well you put your hands under you arms and flap them like chicken."

Red shrugged, "It doesn't seem that hard to do."  
Dib then sat back and watched the spectacle that was Skoodge, Tak and the tallests dancing a very poor chicken dance. GIR giggled insanely and nodded his head quickly to approve of the event. Dib tried to take deep breaths to calm himself observing that the tallests would do just about anything to see ZiM's death.

After a few moments Tak angrily stopped, "Why hasn't the door opened? This is ridiculous and you know it!!"

Dib was about to tell them to start clucking when GIR sighed, "Okie dokie…"

The little robot marched his way to the side of the wall and pressed a small square mark on the wall, opening the door.

Tak glared daggers into the human boy, "You KNEW it wasn't going to open with a dance didn't you?!"

Dib shrugged, "Meh, it was worth it."

Red and Purple, who didn't notice Tak's angry conversation, cheered as the door opened. They didn't care HOW it opened. ZiM's death was something to be seen.

**But will they see it?? R&R if you've got time.**


	13. ZiM LIVES

**See? I still write for you fans. At the end of this chapter is something special, but you've got to read the chapter FIRST or it won't make aaaaaaany sense.**

The door was open, the lights were dim but even Dib could feel the hesitance in the air. The tallests were both bursting with energy and they looked as though they were about to explode with excitement. Tak took a deep breath as though to move forward and then started to push Skoodge towards the entrance of the door.

Skoodge gulped but then started walking on his own, breathing in the hot, humid air. The tallests were following behind him, slowly, taking in the dark room, the smell of molten metal and the sound of… Skoodge, Tak, Dib and the tallests froze.

There was a low purr like hum in the air followed by soft, quiet, deep breathing. Something was breathing. Something was alive.

GIR stood close to Dib, one arm wrapped around the child's leg as he took off the popcorn bag from his head, "It no good in here. Master's timer is out," he pointed up at the computer screen which read 0 hours and 0 minutes.

Dib set a hand on GIR's head but said nothing. The group moved in further and found that a welding tool and pieces of metal colored red, green and black had been left out. Dib had seen this room before on one of his spy cams but didn't know what it was used for. Wires hung from every possible direction looking as though they were ripped from the ceiling and walls rather than just hanging limply for kicks.

There was a turned over desk and what appeared to be ZiM's throw up on the side.

Tak reached out and touched the tip of the welding tool, snatching her hand back, "Still a bit hot… he's definitely in here…"

Skoodge choked back his sadness, "This is gunna be bad…"

Dib had GIR in his arms now, both trembling fearfully. The air in the room held death, but they couldn't find it. Dib tremblingly walked backwards into what he thought was a wall. But as most people know, walls don't grab people. Dib found himself trapped in the grasp of something cold and metallic. His screams echoed out from the room and down a few blocks where his sister only shrugged it off and smirked to herself.

Tak and Skoodge spun around with enough force to pound a toddler into the ground while the tallests grabbed onto each other in fear. Dib struggled with everything he had but stopped when the person holding him laughed evilly.

"ZiM STILL WINS!!" the person let ago so that he could throw his arms into the air victoriously.

Dib fell forward and spun around to view the thing: it was a robot. Round, green head. Piercing red eyes. No mouth, though. Long, thick antennae with a black and red body and tallest-like arms. There was a green orb in the middle of its chest and the boots it wore somewhat resembled the arms.

It seemed to smirk though a mouth still did not become visible, "You do not recognize?"

Everyone shook their heads, so the robot giggled and turned around, revealing a PAK.

GIR perked and pounced, "MASTER!! YOU LIVES!!"

The robot caught GIR and held him under his arm like a package, "Yes, yes the mighty ZiM has won since ZiM was able to cheat EVEN DEATH!!"

ZiM's free arm was up in the air triumphantly.

Tallest Red threw his co-tallest off him, his eyes glued on the robot, "No… no you're supposed to be dead!! How did you-"

"How did I?" ZiM's voice was thick and sweet as it resonated off the walls of the room, "Manage to save myself? It was rather simple really. COME!! ZiM will show you!!"

ZiM pushed past the group and nearly sprinted to the end of the room, GIR still under his arm squealing happily. The robot stopped and turned to make a left disrupting a hologram. Dib went right on running after ZiM, but the other Irkens stopped to look at each other then went in. The disrupted hologram was covering a long hallway. ZiM had neglected to place any lights in the hall, so when the small Irken group came to the end, their eyes were blinded by the glow from incubation tubes.

Dib was marveling over the closest one, his hand on the glass, "It's cold… you made all of these?"

ZiM's eyes expressed his feeling of happiness, tilting to his mood, "Yes. It really only took me a few minutes for each one and after I set up one, the computer would set up its program and fill it with fluid. But enough about _these_," ZiM marched over to one in the back, which held what appeared to be a curled up Irken smeet in the standard Irken uniform, "Say goodnight to ZiM!!" he tapped on the glass, but the Irken didn't stir.

Tak's eye widened as she went up to touch the glass, "Your… your body…."

ZiM nodded, "It's in a fluid cryogenic tube," his hand stroked the glass carefully, "Much safer than cryogenic. At least I won't have to defreeze myself when this is all over and risk breaking off pieces…"

Skoodge smiled and gave ZiM a pat on the back, "I can't believe I doubted you."

ZiM stood as tall as he could, "No one should doubt ZiM. ZiM is amazing!! Like a ZiM."

Skoodge shook his head and turned to see the anger start to boil over in tallest Red's eyes.

The red-eyed tallest turned and started back the way they came, "Come on, Pur, we're leaving."

Purple's eyes widened, "Leaving? Already??"

Red looked back at his co-tallest, "Do you see ZiM dead or do you see ZiM as a robot? Now lets go."  
Red continued his course. Purple looked back to see Skoodge, GIR and Tak congratulating ZiM on his little victory while Dib stood to the side and tried to remain invisible. The purple-eyed tallest finally sighed and joined his companion. Purple could always tell when Red was really angry because when Red was really angry, he didn't say much of anything.

**Here's your 'something special' and don't forget to R&R. Enjoy, seeing as I'm starting to loathe you all!! … No, I kid… ****/****megadoomingir./art/Running-Hard-81388838 Unfortunately, fanfiction will not allow me to post up the www. so you're going to have to put up the www.deviantart .com and copy and paste the rest. Don't forget that you have to type in the devianart .com and then paste it WITH the slash in front.**


	14. Missing

**Been a while, hasn't it? Fine, because you people are asking…**

Tallest Purple quickly caught up with his co-tallest as the hovered down the hallway, "You shouldn't be so angry."

The red-eyed tallest glared ahead, "Oh?"

"You shouldn't," Purple stated firmly, "I mean, sure, ZiM isn't technically dead but when was the last time we actually left the Massive? At all?"

Red sighed, "Not in a long time."

"Exactly," Purple exclaimed, "And think of it this way: robots are easier to break than Irkens. An EMP could shut him down. We could even have someone come down here and reprogram him if you wanted."

The red-eyed tallest led his co-tallest to the elevator, "I suppose…"

The purple-eyed tallest stepped into the elevator, "See? Not all bad."

Red sighed again as he stepped in with his co-tallest and the elevator ascended, "I know. I was just really hoping that ZiM would be out of our way."

Purple shrugged, "So was I, but then I ran out of popcorn and my goals changed completely."

Red rolled his eyes, "Pur, sometimes you can say the dumbest things using such intelligent reasoning."

Purple frowned, "Well… you're dumb."

"No, you're dumb."

"NO, you're DUMB!!"

-

ZiM basked in the glow of the fluid cryogenic tubes, allowing his comrades to study his new being. Granted being a robot had its drawbacks, but THIS was definitely not one of them. Even Dib seemed shocked and amused, both of which he was not hiding well.

"Yes, yes, ZiM is amazing," the robot huffed as though he was tired of saying it; he was not, "but ZiM has much preparations to begin working on."

Skoodge raised an invisible brow, "Like what?"

ZiM glared at Skoodge, but then shrugged it off, "It's much too complicated for an Irken of your stature to comprehend."

Tak nudged the robot, "So you've got nothing?"

"Well…" ZiM started, "ZiM was thinking revenge… but it seems so…"

"What?" Skoodge asked, "Cliché?"

Tak shook her head, "No, it's just unreasonable."

ZiM laughed, "HA!! No, I was more thinking it was not nice. ZiM is actually going to continue to fight the humans," he turned to Dib, "Sorry, human," he mused sarcastically, "but your species will be crushed by ZiM's mighty robotic boot and then be resurrected to clean their remains off the amazing boot what belongs to ZIM!!"

Dib sighed, rubbing his temples, "You… you just never give up do you?" he laughed slightly, "It annoys the sanity out of me."

ZiM 'hmmed', "No wonder you're insane."

Dib, instead of taking the bait, just shrugged, "It could just be that."

ZiM's glowing robotic eyes twitched, "You-" he glared, "YOU DARE IGNORE A JIBE FROM THE MIGHTY ZIIIIIIIM?!"

Dib shook his head. Just as he planned, he got ZiM riled up. Skoodge held the robot back, trying to tell him how much of an idiot the human was.

Tak, no matter how concerned she had been before, took the opportunity to make the situation worse, "And yet… he ignored that jibe…"

The only thing protecting Dib's fragile human bone structure was Skoodge's incredible grip on ZiM's new robotic waist. Now that ZiM was going to be fine, Tak was free to make ZiM as miserable as possible. Even if it meant Dib's sure demise.

-

The tallests stepped out from the toilet, one very agitated and the other trying to remain positive and calm.

Red turned to his co-tallest as they neared the exit, "All right, fine, we're BOTH dumb."

Purple stared, a finger tapping his chin thoughtfully, "O.K., I can live with that," the Irken sat down on ZiM's couch, "I mean… we did think that ZiM could possibly be killed. Look at everything we've thrown at him… everything he does to himself and he still pulls through…" Purple's eyes watered from frustration, "He's invincible."

Red's antennae drooped as he thought over Purple's conclusion, "Yeah…" he took a seat next to his co-tallest, "But as you said, we can reprogram him… maybe even make him a personal toilet scrubber bot for Food Courtia."

Purple raised an invisible brow, "You really want him back there? With his luck the reprogramming won't work and he'll be at the Massive asking for another assignment."

Red turned to look at the TV, "Hm… you're probably right."

The tallests would have sat in silence waiting for their transport except for the quiet, rushed breathing echoing through the air.

Purple's face scrunched up, "Red, knock that off, you sound like one of the Massive's engines."

Red glared at his friend, "Me? You're the one making that noise!!"

Purple glared back, "YOU'RE DUMB!!"

Red quickly cupped a hand on Purple's mouth, "Shh… wait," he mumbled quietly.

The breathing didn't stop. Someone was very close.

Both tallests shifted uncomfortably gazing about the room for any signs of a person, human, Irken or otherwise… but no one was there. Purple gulped and turned to Red, whose eyes were wide with fear, but he suddenly relaxed laughing calmly.

"All right, ZiM," he called out into the room, "your little breathing trick is over now. It was scary before, but now it's just annoying."

Purple smiled nervously, pulling his friend closer, "Red," he whispered, "ZiM's breathing was accompanied by a machine-like hum."

Both tallests paled and snuggled back into the couch, now afraid of who or what lied waiting in the room.

Purple gulped again and turned to Red, "Hey, maybe we'll get some of ZiM's luck and be O.K."

It was at this point that a green arm on the left with a white cloth in its hand covered Purple's face and a mechanical arm on the right with a white cloth covered Red's face. Both arms had wrist guards, similar to the tallests'.

"Sorry," a soothingly terrifying voice said from behind them, "no such luck…"

Both tallests began to drift off as the chemicals in the cloths took effect and a very slim being emerged from behind the couch. He sneered as they finally closed their eyes and went unnoticed as he removed them from the household.

It wasn't moments after the kidnapper had escaped that ZiM emerged from the toilet, marching into the living room, "My tallests!!" he hollered, "ZiM requests things!!"

The little robot looked around the room, then looked up, "Computer, locate tallests."

The computer hummed for a moment, "Unable to locate tallests within base," ZiM's eyes narrowed suspiciously, "widening search…"

ZiM growled nervously, "They wouldn't leave without escorts… the tallests are too predictable."

Tak and Skoodge came up behind the robot.

"ZiM?" Skoodge tapped him on the shoulder, "What's going on."

ZiM turned to face them as Dib and GIR came up from behind the Irkens, "I think the tallests are missing…"

**But who took them? I'LL NEVER TELL!! … Until later in the story…**


End file.
